A total of (2) microfiche and one hundred fifteen (115) frames are included in the appendix.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to automated self-service systems for processing and storing items such as letters and packages for subsequent shipment by a commercial carrier.
The attached microfiche appendix sets forth copyrighted subject matter. No objection is made to reproduction of the appendix solely in connection with reproducing any patent that may issue from this application, but all other rights under copyright law are reserved.
2. Description of the Related Art
Presently, many commercial carriers such as the United States Postal Office and Federal Express, for example, provide drop boxes whereby individuals may ship their letters or packages without having to travel to the carrier""s particular shipping station. A disadvantage of this system is that such boxes cannot be used where the item must be weighed prior to shipping in order to calculate the cost. Another disadvantage is that often the user must have a pre-assigned charge account, or he or she must use a specialized mailing envelope. In addition, the types of mail services from which a user may wish to use are very limited.
While perhaps not widely used commercially, there are several types of automated self-service mailing machines for processing mail for shipment described in various U.S. patents. U.S. Pat. No. 5,233,532 to Ramsden, for example, is directed to a mailing system which allows a user to process and store mail items for subsequent pick-up by a commercial carrier. In particular, the user is able to enter identification information into the system for purposes of payment, enter destination information for shipment, weigh the item, obtain a charge for shipping the item, and deposit the item into a locked storage area. The system contains an intermediate deposit area (xe2x80x9csecured deposit meansxe2x80x9d) which is separated by two inner doors from the storage area. The system contains an electronic scale separate from the intermediate deposit area. After the item is weighed, it is placed into the intermediate deposit area. Once the user closes an outer door to the intermediate area, the item is moved through the inner doors by a series of rollers into a storage area. While this reference suggests the re-weighing of the item to obtain an accurate weight, there is no mechanism to prevent the user from weighing a lighter object to obtain a low cost, and then placing into the intermediate deposit area the heavier item to be shipped.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,065,000 (xe2x80x9c""000xe2x80x9d), 4,923,022 (xe2x80x9c""022xe2x80x9d), and 5,025,386 (xe2x80x9c""386xe2x80x9d) to Pusic are also directed to automated mail systems designed to process and store items, in particular letters. The systems described in these references contain internal weighing means and means for printing machine-readable information (i.e. bar codes) onto the item to be mailed. These references do not appear to teach or suggest a single, rotatable postage meter for generating and dispensing postage meter stamps or strips, nor do they teach a weighing scale capable of detecting minute vibrations that will not operate until such vibrations are absent. Moreover, the references do not teach a tracking bar code verification system to verify that a letter has a tracking bar code or a readable tracking bar code on it.
Thus, it is desirable to have an automatic self-service mail processing and shipping system that allows a user to weigh the mail item securely and accurately to prevent tampering, select from several different mail services (e.g. package or letter, First Class or International), calculate and pay the charge for shipping, obtain a receipt, securely store the item for subsequent pick-up by a commercial carrier, and that is fully capable of processing and storing packages as well as letters. It is also desirable to have a system that includes a single postage meter that is capable of printing a stamp directly onto a letter as well as dispense a postage meter strip for subsequent affixation onto a package or letter.
Certain carriers, such as the United Parcel Service and Federal Express, for example, require that tracking bar codes be placed onto the letters or packages. It is therefore also desirable to have a system that is capable of not only generating a tracking bar code for affixation onto a shipping item, but also have a means for verifying that the item contains the required tracking bar code or contains a tracking bar code that can be read or detected by a bar code scanner.
The present invention is directed to automated self-service mailing systems which will process and securely store packages and letters of various sizes for subsequent pick-up by a commercial carrier. In certain embodiments, the inventive system allows the user to select from a number of different type of mailing service transactions. Specifically, the inventive system includes:
(a) an outer housing,
(b) a computer;
(c) a communication means contained on the outside of said outer housing and coupled to said computer for communicating instructions to said user on how to operate said system to process an item for mailing;
(d) a user input receiving means positioned on the outside of said outer housing and coupled to said computer and said communicating means for receiving input from said user to operate said system;
(e) a payment means coupled to the computer for accepting and verifying payment for processing, storing, and shipping the item for mailing;
(f) a mail service selection data entry means coupled to said computer for receiving data from a user relating to a type of mail service desired by said user;
(g) a shipping designation data entry means coupled to said computer for receiving data from a user relating to the shipping designation of the item;
(h) a postage stamp printing and dispensing means coupled to said computer for printing a postage meter stamp directly onto said item wherein said item is a letter, and for printing and dispensing a postage meter stamp for subsequent affixation onto said item;
(i) a storage area contained within said outer housing for storing processed items for subsequent pick-up;
(j) a secured item acceptance area contained within said outer housing and further comprising an outer door positioned on said front side of said outer housing and coupled to said computer, a platform for holding said item, an inner back door movably attached to said platform, a weighing means mounted below said platform, and a depositing means for depositing said item into said storage area; and
(k) a determining means including said computer for determining the required postage for shipping said item, said determining means being coupled to said shipping designation data entry means, said mailing service selection data entry means, and said weighing means.
In certain embodiments, the inventive system is designed to process and store letters separately from packages, and specifically include:
(a) an outer housing;
(b) a computer;
(c) a communication means contained on the outside of said outer housing and coupled to said computer for communicating instructions to said user on how to operate said system to process a letter for mailing;
(d) a user input receiving means positioned on the outside of said outer housing and coupled to said computer and said communicating means for receiving input from said user to operate said system to process said letter for mailing;
(e) a payment means coupled to the computer for accepting and verifying payment for processing, storing, and shipping the item for mailing;
(f) a mail service selection data entry means coupled to said computer for receiving data from a user relating to a type of mail service desired by said user;
(g) a shipping designation data entry means coupled to said computer for receiving data from a user relating to the shipping designation of the letter;
(h) a postage printing means contained within said outer housing and coupled to said computer for printing a postage meter stamp directly onto said letter;
(i) a transport means, preferably an automatic feed mechanism, contained within said outer housing and coupled to said computer for transporting a letter to said postage printing means;
(j) a weighing means contained within said automatic transport means and coupled to said computer for weighing a letter prior to transport to said postage printing means;
(k) a determining means including said computer for determining the required postage for shipping said letter, said determining means being coupled to said shipping designation data entry means, said mailing service selection data entry means, and said weighing means; and
(l) a storage means for storing said letter after processing.
In the most preferred embodiments of the present invention, the inventive system comprises a area for processing and storing letters separate from another area for processing and storing packages. Preferably in these embodiments, the system includes a rotatable postage meter which is capable of printing a postage meter stamp directly onto a letter and of printing and dispensing a postage meter strip directly to the user through the outer housing for affixation onto a letter or package. Preferably, the inventive system comprises a communication means coupling the computer to the postage meter to activate an automatic meter imprint date change mechanism.
The inventive system also has a novel weighing means for both packages and letters which can detect minute vibrations, such as those caused by a human hand, and thus will not weigh the device until such vibrations are no longer detected.
In other embodiments, the present invention comprises a tracking bar code generation device and a tracking bar code verification system for verifying that a tracking bar code is present on the item to be shipped.
The present invention is also directed to a two-way communication system, in particular a communication means coupled to the inventive mail processing and storing system""s computer, for communicating between the inventive system and an external computer located at a remote station or location. Preferably, the two-way communication system operates to provide the following functions:
(1) Credit authorization and charge reporting;
(2) Transaction and tracking information transfer;
(3) Error reporting and machine-full notification to a remote monitoring station;
(4) Automatic money transfer to the postage meter; and
(5) Electronic mail and EDI (electronic data interchange) facilities for users.